1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a power supply unit that controls a power source, a processing system including a power supply unit and a processing unit, and a control method.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the past, there have been proposed various methods of controlling the start and stop of the power supplies for various devices such as a motherboard and a disc drive that are provided to an information processing apparatus such as a PC (personal computer) and a server.
Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2003-345467 (paragraphs 0012 and 0019 to 0021, FIG. 1) (hereinafter, referred to as Patent Document 1) discloses an information processing apparatus 1 in which a power supply portion 3, a motherboard 5, a hard disc drive apparatus, a CD drive apparatus, and a floppy (registered trademark) disc apparatus are built in a casing 2 thereof. A power supply controller 52 mounted on the motherboard 5 performs on/off control on the power supply portion 3 on the basis of a signal from a main-body power supply switch 6 provided to the casing 2 or a power supply switch 13 provided to a keyboard 10. As a result, the power supply to the motherboard 5, the hard disc drive, and the like from the power source unit 3 is controlled.
It is to be noted that Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. Sho 61-169922 (lower right column of p. 3, FIG. 1) (hereinafter, referred to as Patent Document 2) is given as a document relating to the present application.